The PAR-Q Health Form: Why Fitness Centers Don’t Use It

The PAR-Q or Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire is a health form that helps fitness centers know who are at the highest risk of injuries from exercise. It's a series of 7 questions that quickly allows fitness centers and personal trainers to highlight people who should be seen by their doctor before they start an exercise program. It's a very important health form. But, some fitness centers don't use it. These include some of the biggest names in the fitness world. So why don't gyms use the PAR-Q form? The answer may surprise you. I'm about to tell you the dirty secret fitness centers don't want you to know. If you go to a fitness center or are about to join one, you need to know this.

What's The PAR-Q?

The Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire (PAR-Q), also called “PAR-Q And You” is a single page health history form that lets fitness staff at a glance, see who should go to the doctor before they begin an exercise program. The PAR-Q can be used with people ages 15-69 years of age. It's a great tool for not only personal trainers but also those who teach group exercise classes too. It's a series of test 7 questions which are designed to highlight people who have the greatest risk of health problems during exercise.

Here are the 7 questions in the Par Q:

1. Has your doctor ever said that you have a heart condition and that you should only do physical activity recommended by a doctor?

2. Do you feel pain in your chest when you do physical activity?

3. In the past month have you had chest pain when you were not doing physical activity?

4. Do you lose your balance because of dizziness or do you ever lose consciousness?

5. Do you have a bone or joint problem (for example, back, knee or hip) that could be made worse by a change in your physical activity?

7. Do you know of any other reason why you should not do a physical activity?

Click here to download a free PDF of the PARQ Form from the University of Waterloo.

The PAR-Q document is so important that it's taught to every student majoring in health and fitness. All fitness organizations – such as ACSM, AAAI, ACE, NASM, NSCA, ISSA, WITS, etc. – include this in their textbooks.

Why don't fitness centers use it?

Here's the dirty secret fitness centers don't want you to know…

Why Fitness Centers Don't Use The PAR-Q

To answer this question, I want to tell you about a conversation I had with a friend who used to run a well known fitness center. I won't tell you the name of the fitness facility because I promised her I wouldn’t. Trust me when I say everybody reading these words has heard of this organization.

During our conversation she told me how they used to issue a PAR-Q when new members joined. But, she want on to tell me, they stopped using it after they talked to the lawyerswho told them – and I'm going to quote her here – “the less you know, the better.”

That's right. The lawyer's told the fitness center the less they knew about their members, the better off they were from a legal perspective. They had less of a chance of a successful lawsuit if they did not know the information.

Basically the lawyers were saying that if something ever happened – like a medical emergency – it would be harder for someone to sue a fitness center if the gym did not know about any pre-existing medical/health conditions their members might have.

Wow!

I previously suspected this was happening but this was the first time someone had actually spoken it to me.

From a legal perspective, I can understand why lawyers would say this. Nobody wants to be sued and it’s the lawyers job to protect their clients. I get that completely. But, from the standpoint of the gym members -that means you – I cannot support with this policy.

While I understand fitness clubs are a business, they are also in the business of health. Part of that mission must be the health and safety of those who go to the facility. Having a policy like the one just described is like saying, “Sure, we'll take your money each month but we don't want to know anything about you and if you get hurt, you're on your own.”

When did we stop looking out for each other?

Implications For Personal Trainers

Consider this scenario: you're a personal trainer working with someone who has a serious health issue, like say, heart disease. Suppose your client has a heart attack during a training session. If you knew about the heart disease beforehand, you could, in theory, modify the training so to hopefully reduce the risk of the heart attack occurring.

If members of those gyms had filled out the PAR-Q when they joined, they could have at least been sent to their doctor first to see if it was OK for them to start exercising. Not knowing about the health issues of gym members severely limits the ability of fitness trainers to do their job effectively.

But there is also something else to consider. Let's look at this from the perspective of the personal trainer

You, the personal trainer just witnessed your client having a heart attack. You may have had to do CPR on them or use the AED. You might be emotionally damaged by this incident. The personal trainer might even now suffer post from traumatic stress disorder ( PTSD). Think about it. It was a traumatic incident for you!

This scenario is very real. I lecture to thousands people who want to be personal trainers. Some of them are already personal trainers. Many of these people are very young. When I bring up the idea that people can die during exercise, many of them are shocked!

The owners of fitness centers often don't tell employees about medical emergencies or death from exercise. This is even true for the front desk staff of the gym too. Many fitness centers don't even have an emergency procedure in place either!

Considering that many gyms hire very young/inexperienced people, I sometimes wonder about the legal options of fitness staff who get blindsided by such a scary situation they were not emotionally prepared for. The same thing goes for sexual harassment in the gym too.

I have spoken with personal trainers who have come face-to-face with people having heart attacks and strokes during exercise. But, I've never heard of any legal cases of trainers taking the fitness center to court over PTSD or other emotional trauma that resulted from those incidents.

What Is The Fitness Industry Doing About This?

Nothing. I've not heard a peep out of them about this. Everybody talks a good game about how great the PAR-Q is but nobody wants to talk about why fitness centers don't use it. This topic has never come up at any fitness conference I've ever attended. Likewise, I've never seen this issue addressed in personal trainer journal either. I've also never seen any fitness organization (ACSM, ACE, NSCA, NASM etc.) tackle this. Either the fitness industry is asleep at the wheel or they are looking the other way. By not addressing this issue, they have failed not only fitness trainers but the American public too.

Do Any Fitness Centers Use The PAR-Q?

Yes. I know some do. I distinctly remember being given the PAR-Q when I joined LA Fitness years ago. I have not seen any surveys of health clubs on who uses it and who doesn't so I can't give you a list. The only way to know is to ask.

What Can You Do?

I believe the PAR-Q should be standard in ALL fitness centers. If you work at a gym, you should ask the fitness director or owner why they are not using this valuable document to help ensure the safety of their members. Leave a comment below and tell me what they said.

If you are about to join a fitness center as a member, you should be given a series of documents to complete such as a waiver. In addition, there should also be a health history form and Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire too (it's often called PAR-Q and You”). If you don't see either of these health forms – if the fitness sales person just has you sign a waiver and take your money – stop and inquire why they are not asking questions about your health. Odds are you will not get good answers, but at least you asked.

I recommend you NOT Join ANY fitness center that doesn't have you fill out a health history form and PAR-Q. Don't give them your money. They don't care about you. They only care about your money. Joining these kinds of fitness centers put your health at risk.

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Credentials

Joe Cannon, MS has written for several publications including The Journal of Strength and Conditioning, Today's Dietitian, and Prevention. He's been quoted in the New York Times, lectured to NASA and has been a content consultant for Dateline NBC. He's the author of the first book ever published on rhabdomyolysis and exercise.
Joe Cannon, has a BS in Chemistry and Biology and a MS in Exercise Science. He is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) and a personal trainer certified by the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA).